There's a Spanish Chain Called Taste of America and This is What They Sell

On a trip to Spain in search of ham and great gin and tonics (more on those later) I found myself with a free day to wander the streets of Seville. Down one small street in a small chazerai district of shops selling curtain trimming, I came across this striking display of English and neon that you see above. Taste of America, the store was called, and there were Teddy Grahams and barbecue sauce in the window to prove it.

I have a few American friends living everywhere from London to Kabul, and they all have one complaint in common: the maple syrup, the steak sauce, the turkey—those only-in-the-USA* foods you can't find abroad. When you're an American expat living overseas, sometimes you just gotta have your pancakes.

* And Canada, too. Maple syrup!

Well, if you're an American (or American cuisine sympathizer) living in Spain, Taste of America is there to scratch that itch. They have 20 locations around the country, selling everything from corn syrup to American baking supplies, albeit at some sizable markups—yes, that's €8.50 for Aunt Jemima.

There are also some amusing missteps like marmite and Heinz "sandwich spread" that I've never seen in an American pantry, but having a few British/Aussie products along for the ride seems well worth it for a box of Pop Tarts.